Component handling and tipping machine



May 26, 1964 R. ULLMAN ETAL COMPONENT HANDLING AND TIPPING MACHINE Original Filed Oct. 2, 1956 18 Sheets-Sheet 1 \O SHIFTNG AND sTAcmNo 3e /H0PPER/ Q /FEED l2 1 BEND N-|D/ mn xgrqe /EJCT FEEDING APPL m: MINAL/ 1 fisfYrigzgv/ r 1 A FLY/TERMINAL \35 s|o: A'// 3 1 IH- 36 2a 36 28 n 1 A SIDE A smsh" 32 3214 2'1 g 37 TRIM 510:5" TRIM smsW' APPLY APPLY 1 TERMIQAL E l SIDE a May 26, 1 'R. ULLMAN ETAL COMPONENT HANDLING AND TIPPING MACHINE l8 Sheets-Sheet 2 Original Filed Oct. 2, 1956 May 26, 1964 R. ULLMAN ETAL COMPONENT HANDLING AND TIPPING MACHINE l8 Sheets-Sheet 3 Original Filed Oct. 2, 1956 May 26, 1964 R. ULLMAN ETAL 3,134,161

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COMPONENT HANDLING AND TIPPING MACHINE Original Filed Oct. 2; 1956 18 Sheets-Sheet 16 55a i 1 I i- I May 26, 1964 R. ULLMAN ETAL COMPONENT HANDLING AND TIPPING MACHINE 18 Sheets-Sheet 1'? Original Filed Oct. 2, 1956 May 26, 1964 R. ULLMAN ETAL COMPONENT HANDLING AND TIPPING MACHINE l8 Sheets-Sheet 18 Original Filed 001;. 2, 1956 United States Patent 3,134,161 COMPUNENT HANDLING AND TiPPING MACHINE Robert Ullman, Harrisburg, Henry F. Fortna, Palmyra, John M. Middieton, Harrisburg, Giendon H. Schwalm, York, and Russell L. Tritt, Lemoyne, Pa, assignors to AMP Incorporated, a corporation of New Jersey Original application Oct. 2, 1956, Ser- No. 613,416, new Patent No. 2,961,027, dated Nov. 22, 1%0. Divided and this application Nov. 3t), 1959, Ser. No. 4,847 (Jlaims. (Cl. 29-33) This invention relates to improvements in a component handling and tipping machine, and more particularly, to a machine designed and equipped with interrelated mechanism operable to receive electrical components each having a body and one or more leads projecting longitudinally respectively from opposite ends thereof, arranging said components for successive longitudinal feeding thereof to mechanism which trims one or both of said leads to a predetermined length, applies a terminal preferably to the outer end of one or both of said leads, and then shapes said leads by bending the same into predetermined configurations, whereupon said shaped components are in condition to be inserted into suitable electrical equipment such as a panel board provided with receptacle holes in circuit means into which the tipped leads of the electrical component are to be inserted. This application is a division of our prior copending application Serial No. 613,416, filed October 2, 1956, for Machine for Feeding and Applying Tips to a Series of Electrical Components now Patent No. 2,961,027 issued November 22, 1960.

Various types of electrical components are required for use in many types of electrical circuits at present and particularly electronic circuits of various kinds. The term electrical componen or component, as used hereinafter, is intended to embrace quite an extensive general class of electrical components including, for example, diodes, carbon resistors, pulse transformers, condensors, capacitors, and similar electrical items, each having the general, common characteristics of comprising a body, usually cylindrical, provided with one or more electrical leads such as wire members projecting longitudinally respectively from opposite ends of said body. Most, if not all, of said components have bodies including various kinds of electrical equipment which is sealed within said bodies. Further, these components usually generate a certain amount of heat during the operation thereof and it is preferable to mount said bodies upon a panel board or the like of an electric circuit so that said bodies are spaced from the panel board and thereby may be ventilated by ambient air much more efficiently than if said bodies merely were clamped directly against such panel board for example.

The bodies of such electrical components may be supported effectively from a panel board or the like if the leads projecting from opposite ends thereof are bent more or less at a right angle to the axis of the body, whereby the component has a substantially U-shaped configuration, the bent leads thereof actually comprising the supporting means for the components. Such components may be installed in an electrical circuit on a panel board having a printed circuit thereon, for example, by providing said panel board with receiving holes or sockets directly connected within the circuit, and terminals are applied to the outer ends of the leads of the components, either before or after bending the same. Such terminals have a firm metal-to-metal contact with the lead ends and afford a ready means for connecting such ends of the leads into the circuit by being received within the holes or sockets within the circuit referred to above.

3,134,161 Patented May 26, 1964 "ice Heretofore, the leads of such components usually have been bent by the use of hand operated tools but such manual operations are time consuming, and hence costly. The human element also enters the situation not only from the cost standpoint but also from the possibility of errors occurring. Thus, in an effort to reduce costs and insure the greater accuracy normally resulting from the use of automatic machinery, efforts have been made previously to provide certain types of machines to perform at least some of the more elementary operations required to produce a component having a terminal fixed to at least one lead thereof.

The complexity of handling and performing operations upon components of the type referred to, however, seriously has defied previous efforts to produce substantially automatic machines for feeding said components in desired order, trimming the leads to precise lengths, applying terminals to the ends of said leads, and shaping said leads into predetermined configurations. However, the constantly rising cost of man power has intensified such efforts and the present invention represents, in a single machine, interrelated mechanism capable of performing automatically all of the aforementioned functions to produce shaped components having terminals applied to the outer ends of the leads thereof without requiring any manual effort in such production.

The present invention comprises an exemplary machine including interrelated and sequentially operated portions which function in timed relationship respectively to receive a batch-type supply of similar components arranged at random, sort and feed said components for movement in longitudinal succession to means which arrange the same in stacked relationship one above the other for free movement into a stack wherein said components are substantially parallel to each other, sequentially deliver the endmost component in said stack to indexing mechanism which arranges the components in desired spaced relationship to each other for movement along a path and, in the course of such movement, the excess length of some or all of the leads projecting from the ends of the bodies of the components are trimmed accurately to desired length so as to produce leads of precise dimensions, after which terminals are afiixed to the outer ends of one or both of said leads by multi-function die means which not only curl the terminals around the leads but also swage the same thereto and preferably produce a point on the outer end of each terminal which supplements an outwardly tapered shape into which the united terminal and lead is swaged to facilitate a firm physical contact of the terminals with sockets in the circuit board which receive the same; the components having terminals applied thereto then being moved to a portion of the machine which sequentially accepts the components and clamps the leads thereof to securely hold the components while the outer portions of some or all of the leads thereof are bent precisely into a predetermined configuration and the shaped components then are discharged from the machine.

Further, all portions of the above-described mechanism embodied in the present invention are adjustable so as to render the machine adaptable to sort, feed and stack components of uniform size selected from a relatively Wide range of lengths and diameters of bodies and an extensive range of diameters and lengths of leads, the lead trimming and terminal applying portions of the machine are adjustable to permit the machine to trim the leads to a precise length within a substantial range of different lengths, and the portion of the machine which bends the leads into predetermined configuration also is adaptable to placing the bends in the leads at any desired location and thereby automatically produce an unlimited series of identically shaped components.

The supply of terminals for application to the leads of the components is effected by automatically operated means incorporated in the machine which sequentially feed, stepwise, a series of terminals connected in strip form which are delivered to the terminal applying means, the feeding of said strip of terminals being controlled by the timed arrival and positioning of a component at said applying means, whereby, if for any reason a misfeeding of the components occurs, the terminal applying mechanism will not jam or otherwise misfunction. Further, if the strip of terminals, which preferably is coiled upon a suitable reel, should become tangled, whereby the feeding thereof to the applying means is impeded, safety control means are provided which stop the operation of the entire machine. Additional similar control means also are provided for stopping the machine when the supply of terminals to one or the other of the applying means in the machine becomes exhausted.

The entire machine has been designed so as to be extremely compact and fool-proof in operation. The adjustment of the machine to handle components of a certain size of body and length of lead is accomplished readily and with a minimum of effort in the various portions of the machine which arrange and stack the components, index the components, trim the leads, apply the terminals, and bend the terminals to predetermined shape. All of the various portions of the machine which perform these functions operate in timed sequence relative to each other and are driven by interconnected actuating means, the operation of which is controlled by certain main control means as well as by safety control devices referred to above. In general, as will be seen from the foregoing, the principal objectives of the present invention are to provide an automatically operable machine which will in crease the production rate of components shaped as described above over that possible at present, insure uni formity in the products, and permit ready adjustment of all portions of the machine to operate upon components selected from a wide range of sizes of lengths and diameters of bodies and leads. Also, the unique type of swaging and shaping of the terminals and leads accomplished by the machine results in highly efficient mechanical connection of the terminals to the leads and of the terminals to the circuit boards, improved soldering conditions, and thereby avoids short circuit conditions in the completed products.

Although the invention primarily is adapted and arranged to operate upon components having bodies with terminals projecting longitudinally from opposite ends thereof, it is conceivable that a machine embodying the principles of the invention may be used to apply terminals to the ends of circuit wires, such as jumper wires, which are to be cut or trimmed to predetermined lengths and terminals applied to the ends of said wires for application of said wires to a circuit board for example.

Details of the invention and of an exemplary machine embodying the principles thereof, as well as the advantages and efficient operating characteristics of the machine, are set forth in the following specification and illustrated in the drawings accompanying the same and comprising a part thereof.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a schematic general layout of a machine embodying the basic principles of the invention and illustrating particularly the various stations at which components are handled or acted upon in various Ways by the machine to form the desired product.

FIGURE 2 is a front elevation of that portion of the machine which arranges components from a random mass into an orderly stack from which they are delivered to an indexing means embodied in the machine.

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the arranging means illustrated in FIGURE 2, only the forward portion of said means being illustrated in FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 4 is a side elevation of the means shown in FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary sectional vertical elevation taken on the line 55 of FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken on the line 66 of FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 7 is an exploded perspective view showing two relatively adjustable elements comprising guide chutes and embodied in the arranging mechanism illustrated in FIGURES 2 through 4.

FIGURE 8 is a horizontal sectional view of part of the mechanism shown in FIGURE 4 and taken on the line 88 of said figure.

FIGURE 9 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 99 of FIGURE 8 to illustrate certain details of the mechanism shown in FIGURE .8.

FIGURE 10 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 1tII@ of FIGURE 8 for purposes of illustrating further details of the mechanism shown in FIGURE 8.

FIGURE 11 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken on the line 11I1 of FIGURE 2 and illustrates details of means for discharging components from the lower end of a stack thereof in the arranging mechanism shown in FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 12 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 12I2 of FIGURE 11 and illustrating details of the discharge mechanism shown in the latter figure.

FIGURE 13 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 13-43 of FIGURE 4 and illustrating still further details of the discharge mechanism.

FIGURE 14 is a front perspective view of that portion of the machine which embodies the indexing means, terminal feeding and applying means, and the principal supporting mechanism for said means; the component stacking and lead bending means of the machine being omitted to simplify the View. 7

FIGURE 15 is a plan view of that portion of the machine which is illustrated in FIGURE 14.

FIGURE 16 is a front elevational view of that portion of the machine which is illustrated in FIGURE 14.

FIGURE 17 is a side elevation of that portion of the machine which is illustrated in FIGURE 14.

FIGURE 18 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line Iii-1% of FIGURE 16 but illustrating on a larger scale than in the latter figure certain details of the component indexing means, and portions of the terminal applying means and control means therefor, parts of the elements of the mechanism being broken away to foreshorten the view.

FIGURE 19 is a vertical sectional view taken at a right angle to the view in FIGURE 18 and shown on the line 1919 of FIGURE 18.

FIGURE 20 is a vertical elevation opposite to that shown in FIGURE 18 as seen from the line 2020 of FIGURE 16.

FIGURE 21 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken generally along the line 2121 of FIGURE 20 and showing details of the terminal feeding and applying; portions of the machine.

FIGURE 22 is an exploded perspective view of a com-- posite terminal applying die and the anvil structure which cooperates therewith.

FIGURE 23 is a fragmentary perspective view of the index mechanism and illustrates means for releasably' holding the indexing mechanism periodically at various positions of advancement thereof.

FIGURE 24 is a perspective elevation of shaft means for supporting and adjusting the index wheels of the indexing mechanism.

components being moved along a predetermined path by the indexing wheels of the mechanism and illustrating the various positions of the components as they are moved 

1. A MACHINE FOR ARRANGING AND FEEDING IN SEQUENCE ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS HAVING LEADS PROJECTING FROM OPPOSITE ENDS THEREOF AND AFFIXING TERMINALS TO AT LEAST ONE OF SAID LEADS AND BENDING AT LEAST ONE OF SAID LEADS INTO A PREDETERMINED SHAPE, SAID MACHINE COMPRISING IN COMBINATION, MEANS OPERABLE TO RECEIVE A BATCH SUPPLY OF SUCH COMPONENTS AND ARRANGE AND FEED THE SAME SEQUENTIALLY IN PREDETERMINED POSITION FROM SAID MEANS, MEANS OPERABLE IN TIMED RELATIONSHIP WITH SAID ARRANGING MEANS TO RECEIVE SAID COMPONENTS SEQUENTIALLY FROM SAID ARRANGING MEANS AND SUPPORT AND MOVE SAID COMPONENTS SEQUENTIALLY ALONG A PREDETERMINED PATH TO A TERMINAL APPLYING STATION IN SAID MACHINE, TERMINAL APPLYING MEANS OPERABLE AT SAID STATION TO AFFIX A TERMINAL TO AT LEAST ONE OF SAID LEADS OF EACH COMPONENT, MEANS OPERABLE TO FEED TERMINALS SEQUENTIALLY TO SAID TERMINAL APPLYING MEANS, MEANS CONTROLLING THE OPERATION OF SAID TERMINAL FEEDING MEANS AND INCLUDING ACTUATING MEANS ENGAGEABLE BY SAID COMPONENTS DURING MOVEMENT THEREOF TO SAID TERMINAL APPLYING STATION TO INITIATE OPERATION OF SAID FEEDING MEANS, AND LEAD FORMING MEANS OPERABLE IN TIMED RELATIONSHIP TO THE MOVEMENT OF SAID COMPONENT RECEIVING AND SUPPORTING MEANS TO RECEIVE COMPONENTS THEREFROM AND BEND 